Received November 20, 2018; Revised December 4, 2018; Accepted December
4, 2018
Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) were the first stem cells discovered in
humans. A. A. Maximov proposed an idea of blood stem cells that was
confirmed later by McCulloch and Till experimentally. HSCs were the
first type of stem cells to be used in clinics and ever since are being
continually used. Indeed, a single HSC transplanted intravenously is
capable of giving rise to all types of blood cells. In recent decades,
human and animal HSC origin, development, hierarchy, and gene signature
have been extensively investigated. Due to the constant need for donor
blood and HSCs suitable for therapeutic transplants, the experimental
possibility of obtaining HSCs in vitro by directed
differentiation of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) has been considered in
recent years. However, despite all efforts, it is not yet possible to
reproduce in vitro the ontogenesis of HSCs and obtain cells
capable of long-term maintenance of hematopoiesis. The study of
hematopoiesis in embryonic development facilitates the establishment
and improvement of protocols for deriving blood cells from PCSs and
allows a better understanding of the pathogenesis of various types of
proliferative blood diseases, anemia, and immunodeficiency. This review
focuses on the development of hematopoiesis in mammalian ontogenesis.
KEY WORDS: hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), hematopoietic
progenitors, hematopoietic hierarchy, mouse development, human
hematopoiesis, AGM, embryo